WISDOM OF THE MOVING BODY

An online, experiential class in trauma-informed movement practices
for movement educators, psychotherapists, body workers and somatic practitioners

with
Paula Josa-Jones MA, CLMA, MSME/T, SEP, TTEAM

A recipe for entering the body:
Attention: because the body is precise.
Listening: because the body is subtle.
Kindness: because the body is tender.

This experiential, three-module course is designed for movement educators and therapists, somatic practitioners, body workers and psychotherapists who wish to bring movement practices more fully into their work. Skills we cover in this class will build confidence in your ability to integrate movement as a tool for both deepening embodiment and supporting trauma recovery by expanding your somatic movement understanding, vocabulary and practice.

In learning to move from the body's innate rhythms and impulses, we open to deeper expressivity and vitality. Grounding experience in the moving body dissolves the separation between inner and outer and deepens the connection to ourself. Conscious movement, breath, touch, sound and imagery allow us to sense and feel ourselves and others with greater clarity and curiosity.

Some of the modalities included in this class include:

  • Fundamentals of Laban Movement Analysis
  • The practice of Authentic Movement
  • Deep Listening strategies of composer Pauline Oliveros
  • Perspectives of Body-Mind Centering (guest presenter)
  • Perspectives drawn from Somatic Experiencing®
  • An introduction to Stephen Porges's Polyvagal theory
  • Titration and the basics of the threat response cycle
  • The anatomy of trauma
  • Touch skills drawn from both Tellington TTouch and from Kathy Kain's Touch Skills
  • Improvisational strategies drawn from my experience as a movement educator, choreographer and performer.

    The course includes 24 hours of online class meetings, two individual coaching sessions and a downloadable richly visual manual of skill-based practices, somatic meditations and practical anatomical information.


    My intention is to share perspectives from more than 45 years of embodied exploration: experiences that have shaped me and my work, as well as practices that I have found to be revelatory and transformative in my practice. The course nourishes a vibrant, ongoing sense of our own embodiment and somatic awareness as practitioners - our ability to track our own systems as we are working with clients or students. What perspectives have I included or not included in sensing my own presence?

    I want us to become more curious about and more aware of the shifting tone of our inner witness. How do we sense ourselves in a moment-to-moment bodily way? Who is seeing? What are the selective preferences of our sensing? How can we slide our attention from witnessing to being witnessed without a ripple?

    The learning goals of this program are:
  • Building skill and confidence in your ability to integrate movement exploration into your therapeutic or educational practice.
  • Cultivating movement awareness to enhance your observational, relational and attunement skills, including improvisational and intentional practices.
  • Understanding the fundamentals of Laban Movement Analysis and other somatic movement modalities to expand the possibilities for movement expressivity and ease for you, your clients and students.

    Paula Josa-Jones brings over 45 years of experience in dance, somatic movement studies and improvisation and performance to her work, weaving her knowledge of Laban Movement Analysis, somatic and embodiment practices, Authentic Movement and Somatic Experiencing®, as well as over 30 years of embodied work with horses as partners and collaborators. She says, "At the core of my teaching is a passion for movement that springs from an unpredictable, limitless aliveness in the body. Being in the body means experiencing it in a bloodful, breathing way that is transformative and improvisational - diving into the deep waters of the body and all its wild possibility"

    This class will be offered through the
    ISMETA Professional Development Center in the Fall of 2024.
    Details will be posted here soon!